• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

InstaFresh Meals

Inspiration for Tasty Living

  • Home
  • About
    • About Me
    • Work with me
    • Media Kit
  • Recipes Index
  • Instant Pot Basics
  • Shop
  • Contact

You are here: Home / Recipes by Category / Soups/Stews/Chili / Pressure Cooker Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup

Pressure Cooker Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup

January 16, 2018

Last modified on April 25th, 2023

Jump To RecipePrint Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links, which means I get a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you. I only recommend items I love and have had a positive experience with. Thank you!

566 shares
FREE EMAIL BONUS
5 Expert Instant Pot Tricks
HOW TO SAVE TIME AND MONEY WITH THE INSTANT POT
Pressure Cooker Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup is easy throw together and the most flavorful tomato soup ever thanks to a few secret ingredients

The classic tomato soup that everyone loves is getting a seriously flavorful makeover.  Prepare to swoon over this silky, creamy Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup in all its good-for-you glory!


Close up of a bowl of tomato soup

I've been on the hunt for a LONG TIME you guys for a tomato soup that would complete me.  I've tried new ones each season for years and never could quite find THE one.  I've got serious standards for tomato soup. It's got to be thick (but not marinara sauce thick) creamy (without being loaded with cream), smooth (but a little chunky) and have a deep, rich tomato flavor that takes me back to peak tomato season.  This is it y'all.  This is Instant Pot Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup.

A spoonful of tomato soup being held towards camera

Time to bust out some Instant Pot Crusty Bread or Grilled Cheese for sure.

Close up of instant pot crusty bread next to tomato soup

Or actually, if you're a 2 pressure cooker home, you must must MUST make this Pressure Cooker Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread. ❤❤❤

Close up of pressure cooker cornbread

This Pressure Cooker Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup has 2 secret ingredients that earned it rock star status.

Secret Ingredient #1: Fennel

Have you ever used fennel?  I recall using it in a salad years ago, that's about it.  It has a beautiful smell and adds a little somethin' to the soup that I doubt anyone will be able to pinpoint.  However, I used a rather large bulb of fennel the first time I made this and it was too much, so stick with the shy cup I wrote for below, and it will be amazing.  Don't know how to cut it?  Check out the notes in the recipe below.  It's easy peasy.

Secret Ingredient #2: Parmesan Rind

Do you know how many of these I've thrown away over the years!?  Why did it take me this long to know of its potential!?  If you want good parm, go for the big blocks of it (I buy it at Sams Club) with a nice rind then start hoarding those pieces of rind in your freezer like your life depends on it.  They infuse a perfect sharp nuttiness to the soup that I just don't think can be replaced with anything else.

Both these secrets came from my early morning runs with Rachael Ray.  Genius that girl.  My life goal is to meet Ray Ray (which is what I call her in my pretend world where we are besties).  One day….one day.

A piece of bread being dipped into a bowl of tomato soup

And once again, like in this Baked Potato Soup, Enchilada Soup, and White Chicken Chili, I'm using just veggies to make it creamy, so you can justify more cheese on your grilled cheese.  I get you, I do.

Now bust out your pressure cookers and make this soup happen!  Or wait till after Thursday so you can pair your soup with that recipe.  Marriage made in heaven, comin' right up.

Enjoy!

Tools Used to Make Instant Pot Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup

Instant Pot

Immersion Blender

Blendtec Blender

*This post contains affiliate links. Thank you!

Recipe adapted from The Rachael Ray show

Print

Pressure Cooker Veggie Lovers Tomato Basil Soup

Close up of a bowl of tomato soup
Print Recipe

★★★★

4 from 3 reviews

This Tomato Basil Soup is so rich tasting and flavorful!  Perfect partner to any grilled cheese or panini.

  • Author: Marci
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Pressure cooker
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 small bulb of fennel, coarsely chopped – just shy of 1 cup (see notes for tips on how to cut fennel)
  • 1 carrot, coarsely chopped
  • 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2–3 inch piece of parmesan rind
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes (preferably San Marzano) or 2 pounds fresh tomatoes
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato puree
  • 15 ounce can diced tomatoes or 1 pound fresh tomatoes diced
  • 1/4 cup (packed) fresh basil, cut into ribbons

Instructions

  1. Preheat the pressure cooker by selecting saute.  Add oil, butter, fennel, carrot, onion, celery, garlic, salt, pepper, bay leaf, and parmesan rind.  Stir to coat veggies with oil and butter, then place the lid loosely on the pressure cooker and allow the veggies to sweat for 5-7 minutes, until starting to soften.
  2. Add chicken broth, whole tomatoes, and tomato puree (in that order).  Do not stir.
  3. Secure the lid and turn pressure release knob to a sealed position.  Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.
  4. When cooking is complete, use a natural release for 10 minutes then release any remaining pressure.
  5. Remove bay leaf and any remaining parmesan rind.  Carefully pour or ladle pot contents into a blender (be sure not to overfill blender; do in batches if needed) or use an immersion blender directly in the pot and blend until very smooth.  Return soup to the pot.  Stir in fresh basil and can of diced tomatoes (can omit if a completely smooth soup is desired).  Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
  6. Serve hot.  Store in refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for several months.

Freezer Meal Instructions: 

  1. For this recipe, I like to double or triple the amount of ingredients listed in step 1.  I use what I need for dinner that night, then portion and freeze the rest.  Don't forget to label what they are for!
  2. When ready to cook, add bag of frozen ingredients to the pressure cooker pot and add can of whole tomatoes and tomato puree.  Cook at high pressure for 22 minutes then proceed with the rest of the directions above.

Notes

How to Cut Fennel

  1. Cut closely to the bulb of fennel to remove the stalk.
  2. Trim a thin layer off the bottom of the bulb.
  3. Cut the bulb in half then in quarters.
  4. Cut away the middle core from each bulb (like you would on a pineapple)
  5. Place each piece of fennel on a stable side and slice each into 3 pieces
  6. That's it!  You're done!

Keywords: instant pot soup, comfort food, creamy soup,

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

I love to see what you're cooking from my blog! Show me your creations on Instagram using hashtag #INSTAFRESHMEALS
For more Insta Fresh food talk, join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube

FREE EMAIL BONUS
5 Expert Instant Pot Tricks
HOW TO SAVE TIME AND MONEY WITH THE INSTANT POT
566 shares

Tags: basil, butter, canned whole tomato, carrot, celery, chicken broth, diced tomatoes, fennel, garlic, olive oil, onion, parmesan cheese, tomato puree
Leave a Comment

You might also like

  • Instant Pot Sweet Corn RisottoInstant Pot Sweet Corn Risotto
  • Instant Pot Easy Chicken Pot PieInstant Pot Easy Chicken Pot Pie
  • Instant Pot Cheesy Meatball Sub SoupInstant Pot Cheesy Meatball Sub Soup
  • Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Soup with Blue Cheese NachosInstant Pot Buffalo Chicken Soup with Blue Cheese Nachos

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Judy says

    January 13, 2020

    Thanks for your speedy response.

    ★★

    Reply
  2. Judy says

    January 13, 2020

    Do you turn off the sauté when sweating the vegetables? If not, what level of sauté do you use? High, med, low?

    Reply
    • Marci says

      January 13, 2020

      Judy, I use medium typically.

      Reply
  3. Shelley says

    January 21, 2019

    Fantastic! I guess I need to blend it more…my boys said it reminded them of pizza sauce. 😆
    What a great taste. I used dried basil (half the amount) which seemed perfect… I could not locate any fresh basil in my town so will definitely redo just to see the taste difference. Another soup success in ny house. (My husband says he could live off of soup so he is loving all this experimenting with soups. 😊)

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Marci says

      January 21, 2019

      Shelley, Well that’s the best compliment ever to hear a husband say he could live off soup! That’s unheard of in my family:). I adore this soup, it’s different than any other tomato soup I’ve ever had and I love that!

      Reply
  4. Stephanie Koehler says

    November 10, 2018

    The best tomato basil soup & potato soup ever. AWESOME!!

    Another questions. I was looking for a split pea pressure cooker soup and found this site hippressurecooking.com. I was looking around on it the website she has a “Consumer Alert” post which indicates that you should never use liquor in a pressure cooker, which means Vodka.

    She indicates that she spoke to, Dr. Bella, some PHD guy who indicated that you should never put liquor in a pressure cooker.

    A quote from her site, ” Soon after, another blogger changed the method by proposing putting the same concoction (vodka and vanilla) into a jar, screwing on the lid to “fingertip tight” and then pressure steaming the liquor-filled jars on a rack.”

    Have you ever heard of an incident using liquor in a pressure cooker?

    I’ve made your Vanilla extraction recipe since I saw it on Pininterest and never thought about my “new” pressure cooker blowing up. I plan to continue to make Vanilla extract via your method – hoping she doesn’t prove me wrong.

    Just thought I would let you know – but you probably already know.

    Thank you for a return comment & on your great pressure cooker recipes!
    Stephanie

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Marci says

      November 12, 2018

      Stephanie, I’m so glad you liked it, it’s my favorite ever!

      I have seen this. The incident she had was over an open flame with a stove top pressure cooker which is very different than how I wrote my recipe. Take a look at my Vanilla Extract recipe FAQ section. I’ve written up my personal research there if you’d like to read through it. Thanks!

      Reply

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Marci at Tidbits

Welcome! I’m Marci, wife to my motorcycle dream man and mother of 3. I have a passion for creating delicious, unique recipes in my kitchen and am ecstatic to share my discoveries on InstaFresh Meals! I like my food tasty, wholesome, memorable, and always, ALWAYS followed by dark, salty chocolate.

Reader Favorites

  • Pot roast and carrots with mashed potatoes Instant Pot Pot Roast (Tender + Flavorful)
  • instant pot breakfast casserole on a plate with toast Instant Pot Breakfast Casserole in a Jar
  • Three bowls of pressure cooker pasta in a row How to Cook Pasta in the Instant Pot – The Perfect Formula
  • Instant Pot Mexican Inspired Healthy Crack Chicken in a bowl Instant Pot Healthy Crack Chicken
  • Oatmeal muffins in a basket with a blue cloth Instant Pot Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins AKA BeeBo Bites
  • Instant Pot Steak Fajitas on a plate with peppers and onions Instant Pot Easy Steak Fajitas

Instant Pot Freezer Meals

  • Frozen meals in a bag with ribbons Instant Pot Freezer Meal Gift Ideas with Free Printables
  • butternut squash soup in a white bowl with peanuts and basil Instant Pot Healthy Butternut Squash Soup with a Thai Twist
  • Instant Pot Chipotle Peach BBQ Ribs on a plate Instant Pot Chipotle Peach BBQ Ribs
  • Top shot of creamy enchilada soup in a white bowl Instant Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
  • two instant pot tamales on a plate Instant Pot Tamales – Healthy Version
  • Philly Cheesesteak on a wood cutting board Instant Pot Easy Philly Cheesesteak

Free email bonus

5 Expert Instant Pot Tricks

How to save time and money
with the Instant Pot

Our digital ecookbook, get your copy now for all your devices.

Archives

Follow Us

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Footer

5 Expert Instant Pot Tricks

How to save time and money with the Instant Pot

 

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest

Copyright © 2023 · Tidbits on Genesis Framework · Disclosure and Privacy Policy · WordPress · Log in

566 shares
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkRead more